NCAA Notes: Golden Eagles Soaring in Year Two

With a 4-1 record in the Big East
including last week's win over Georgetown, Marquette is a win over
Denver away from a conference title in its second year.
(Marquette Athletics)

Marquette head coach Joe Amplo didn't attempt to hide his
surprise at the way the Golden Eagles have grown during their
second season as a Division I program.

A year after Marquette launched by finishing 5-8, with its best
victory coming in Colorado Springs against Air Force, the unranked
Golden Eagles are 6-8, have clinched a spot in the Big East
tournament and count a stunning, 11-9 victory at Hofstra (10-3) on
February 15 as their signature moment.

Even two months ago, after beating the Pride – now ranked
no. 10, the top seed in the upcoming CAA tournament and 10-1 in its
last 11 games – Amplo never saw the stakes being so high this
week for his young squad.

With a 4-1 record against the Big East, including an improbable,
11-10 overtime win Saturday against Georgetown that marked their
fourth, one-goal victory in league play, the Golden Eagles are
playing at third-ranked Denver (11-2, 5-0) on Saturday. The winner
will earn the no. 1 seed in next week's Big East tournament at
Villanova.

"I came into this season thinking we had a chance to compete in
our league," Amplo said. "It's been amazing to have won all four of
those conference games by one goal. Never in my wildest dreams did
I think we'd be playing this weekend for the regular-season
title."

No one is mistaking Marquette for a juggernaut. The Golden
Eagles are not ranked among the top 25 in Division I in any
offensive or defensive category. They give up an average of nearly
two goals per game than they score, are routinely out-shot and have
trouble winning half of their faceoff attempts.

But Marquette has steadily improved and has found different ways
to win. That was never more evident than on Saturday, when the
Golden Eagles went on a game-ending, 8-1 tear to shock the
Hoyas.

The rally started when Amplo took assistant coach's John Orsen's
suggestion and inserted LSM Tyler Gilligan in place off struggling
faceoff man Cullen Cassidy in the middle of the third quarter, with
Marquette trailing, 9-3. Gilligan, who had not taken a single draw
this year, won four of 10 attempts against Tyler Knarr, including
the only faceoff in overtime, a possession that ended with freshman
Ryan McNamara's game winner 54 seconds into OT.

"Each week, there's a different story," Amplo said. "We had a
defensive grind-out against Providence [a 7-6 victory]. Some days
our goalie [freshman Jimmy Danaher] has bailed us out. We've had to
find ways to score goals quickly, like we did against Georgetown.
We're figuring it out."

With a roster that features 35 players ranging from true
freshmen to redshirt sophomores – and eight Canadian players
– the Golden Eagles have experienced their share of twists
and turns. They've been good enough to stun Hofstra, sloppy enough
to get run off the field by Marist, overmatched enough to lose to
no. 2 Duke by 11 goals.

The bottom line is Marquette, which is led in scoring by
Canadians Tyler Melnyk (36 goals, 14 assists) and Kyle Whitlow (19,
10), has won four of its last six after starting 2-6. That includes
a double-overtime, 11-10 thriller at St. John's on April 6. The
bottom line is Marquette will make the Big East tournament as no
worse than a no. 3 seed.

Not bad for an operation in Year Two.

Another Early Startup Success

Drexel head coach Brian Voelker, whose Dragons (9-4) are gunning
for a CAA title that would put them in the school's first-ever NCAA
tournament as an automatic qualifier, will confront another
up-and-coming newbie in Division I on Saturday at High Point.

Coached by Jon Torpey, the Panthers (8-5) are tied with Mercer
atop the Atlantic Sun standings at 4-1 and are locked into the no.
2 seed in next week's league tournament. High Point, which went
3-12 in its inaugural season in 2013, is fresh off of a 12-8 loss
at no. 5 North Carolina. The Tar Heels held just one-goal lead
early in the fourth quarter.

"If there were any start-up teams back when I played in the
prehistoric days, they wouldn't win any games for a long time,"
Voelker said, following Saturday night's 13-7 victory at Towson,
Drexel's fifth straight.

"There are a lot of good lacrosse players from a lot of
different areas now. You look at a lot of teams, and you see good
pieces. High Point is one of those teams. We're not good enough to
say, hey, we're Drexel, we're going to beat those guys. If we don't
work hard and play well, we're not going to win the game. That's
the way the lacrosse world works right now."

Retriever's Special Special-Teamer

UMBC senior faceoff specialist Phil Poe has never appeared in an
NCAA tournament game. But one of the best special teamers in school
history showed in Saturday's 18-14 loss to visiting, no. 20 Albany
why the Retrievers (6-6) could be dangerous as a no. 3 seed in next
week's America East tournament.

Poe was magnificent. He won 23 of 35 faceoffs, including 16 of
the game's first 20 draws. But UMBC's sloppy ball handling and
impatient shot selection wasted too many possessions and allowed
the best transition offense in the land to catch fire too
often.

With a young and talented offense emerging around playmakers
such as Pat Young and Max Maxwell, UMBC might be heard from for the
next few years. Poe gives UMBC a shot in his last go-round to go
through Binghamton and Albany successfully next week, after the
Retrievers lost to both opponents during the regular season.

"It saddens me to know this is my last year with these guys,"
said Poe, who owns school records for face-off wins in a game (23,
twice), a season (218 in 2013) and career (604). A first-team
faceoff man in the America East in 2012 and 2013, Poe has picked up
more ground balls (303) than any UMBC player in its 34-year,
Division I history.

"We're counting down the days. We seniors know what's left in
our sand clock," added Poe, who longs for the chance to play in the
NCAAs. "That stings. We were really close last year. We are so
close [this year]. I'd be lying if I said I haven't dreamt about it
a few times."